Welcome to the FINAL edition of “Predictions from the Faculty” (Season #3). This weekend, we gathered our thoughts for the upcoming WWE Pay-Per-View, as we will provide our selections for The Royal Rumble. The show will be held at the home of the 2011 World Series Champions, St. Louis, Missouri.

The card is currently booked to have four matches.

In case you are new to reading these predictions, here is the format. Each Pay-Per-View a few of the columnists on Wrestleview provide predictions on who they think will win the matches. We accumulate the records throughout the end of the Faculty’s year (in this case, the 2012 Royal Rumble). The NEW Season of Predictions from the Faculty will begin on February 12, 2012.

What makes this entirely different to others is that you, the reader, can provide your picks for a spot to have yours posted in an upcoming PPV. All the readers have to do is either leave me a message on Facebook or e-mail at mistervwv@hotmail.com. The winner among the “Wrestleview Students” will win an opportunity to post their picks as a “Student of the Week” (if they outright defeat the reigning Students of the Week). We all thank you for your participation.

Tie-Breakers will determine standings!

I have decided to prevent some tiebreakers, I will issue points to Title Matches that are predicted correctly. There will be two championship matches on the card, so the maximum amount of points to go along with the win/loss standing will be TWO points. Also, if I throw out a pick for a championship, then obviously no bonus will be counted for that particular match.

But wait, to the Wrestleview “students”, there is more!

I got approval for this decision, and for the FIRST time in our three seasons the students will compete for PRIZES!!! That is right; we felt that your loyalty to the article shall be rewarded. However, the prizes* will not be handed out until the FINAL PPV Prediction of the season (which will be WWE’s Royal Rumble 2012). So not only will one get a chance to earn a Gold Star and be a part of this game, but it will be for a competition.

*Prizes go out to the top three (the most picked correctly and if needed tiebreaker points) positions and the worst (most matches picked incorrectly with the fewest tiebreaker points).

The person with the most picks incorrect is currently 62-94 with 32 tiebreaker points. Therefore, I deem that score the worst.

Also to those that have participated in all the previous PPVs, keep it up. Though there is only one PPVs left you can still be a Student of the Week sometime this year.

As of Press Time, have yet to offer predictions from Jose Marrero, Mike Tedesco, Dave Stephens, and Darragh O’Connor.

And now, the moment you all have been waiting for…

Predictions for WWE Royal Rumble 2012

*** NON-TITLE MATCHES ***

Singles MatchJohn Cena vs. Kane

Jose M. – N/A.

Ryan R. – JOHN CENA.

Gregory W. – JOHN CENA.

Mike T. – N/A.

Dave S. – N/A.

Anthony V. – KANE. I was debating, and since there was no stipulation about it being a No DQ I think Cena will only embrace the hate on Kane and cost himself the match.

Nick G. – CENAR.

Jason N. – JOHN CENA.

Josh B. – CENA.

Greg M. – JOHN CENA.

Evan O. – JOHN CENA.

Darragh O. – N/A.

Matt O. – JOHN CENA.

Austen A. – JOHN CENA.

CONSENSUS: CENA 9-1. Kane has gotten under Cena’s skin the past few weeks and since then Cena may have started to “embrace the hate”. Cena should come out on top and overcome the Big Red Monster, just in time to gain steam against the Rock on the Road to Wrestlemania.

The 30-Man Royal Rumble

Stip: The Miz is entrant #1 because of his loss to R-Truth last Monday.

Jose M. – N/A.

Ryan R. – CHRIS JERICHO.

Gregory W. – WADE BARRETT.

Mike T. – N/A.

Dave S. – N/A.

Anthony V. – RANDY ORTON. St. Louis is Orton Country. He will be back from injury and he is the face of Smackdown. Expect him to outlast Wade Barrett in what should be a classic.

Nick G. – WADE.

Jason N. – RANDY ORTON AT #24, last eliminating Wade Barrett.

Josh B. – JERICHO.

Greg M. – WADE BARRETT.

Evan O. – CHRIS JERICHO.

Darragh O. – N/A.

Matt O. – RANDY ORTON.

Austen A. – SHEAMUS.

CONSENSUS: A PUSH (for Barrett, Orton, and Jericho with 3 votes each.). Sheamus only received one vote, but the Wrestleview Staff is very split this year and that will make for a very unpredictable Royal Rumble Match. Some picked Chris Jericho because of the weeks-long hype, lack of speech, and the few words that he spoke. This could be Jericho’s year. Or, it could be a big win for Barrett who is coming along nicely the past few months. Winning the match could do great things for a young superstar like Barrett. Also, some picked Orton to win based on his return, top-level status, and possibly because St. Louis is his hometown. Still, I say enjoy the Rumble. It only happens once a year.

*** CHAMPIONSHIP MATCHES ***

Triple Threat Steel Cage Match for the World Heavyweight Championship

Daniel Bryan (c) vs. Mark Henry vs. The Big Show

Jose M. – N/A.

Ryan R. – DANIEL BRYAN.

Gregory W. – DANIEL BRYAN.

Mike T. – N/A.

Dave S. – N/A.

Anthony V. – BRYAN. I think if Henry or Show loses, no harm done. They will still get their chances. Now if Bryan lost the match, it could hurt him a bit. I say he sneaks out another win, then loses it at Elimination Chamber (if the reign lasts that long).

Nick G. – DBRY~!

Jason N. – DANIEL BRYAN.

Josh B. – BRYAN.

Greg M. – DANIEL BRYAN.

Evan O. – DANEIL BRYAN.

Darragh O. – N/A.

Matt O. – DANIEL BRYAN.

Austen A. – DANIEL BRYAN.

CONSENSUS: BRYAN 10-0. This may be the most shocking one of them all, as no one has faith that the title will change hands despite Bryan’s disadvantage in size. However there are many reasons why Bryan should retain the World Heavyweight Championship, at least for a few more weeks.

Singles Match for the WWE World Championship

Stips: John Laurinaitis is the special guest referee. Also, Dolph Ziggler’s associates Vickie Guerrero and Jack Swagger are banned from ringside.

CM Punk (c) vs. Dolph Ziggler

Jose M. – N/A.

Ryan R. – PUNK.

Gregory W. – CM PUNK.

Mike T. – N/A.

Dave S. – N/A.

Anthony V. – PUNK. I think Monday’s fax sealed Ziggler’s fate. He won’t have Johnny Ace giving him a victory and I think after all this Punk comes out the winner. Expect Punk to hold the title for a bit longer.

Nick G. – ZIGGLES.

Jason N. – CM PUNK.

Josh B. – PUNK.

Greg M. – CM PUNK.

Evan O. – CM PUNK.

Darragh O. – N/A.

Matt O. – DOLPH ZIGGLER.

Austen A. – CM PUNK.

CONSENSUS: PUNK 8-2. The majority saw a new twist to this match, and now the tides have switched over to the side of the champion. Expect Punk to retain the title, and possibly bash Johnny Ace along the way.

Dismissal

Well, that does it for THE FINAL ROUND of “Predictions from the Faculty” for the 2011-2012 season.

And remember students, this is YOUR column too! Please present to me your choices and the winner of each PPV receives a coveted (and NEVER duplicated) Gold Star in my next column and will be named the “Student of the Week” for the next Predictions article. Also, this will help your skills for next season.

Well, that does it for us, class. On behalf of my peers on Wrestleview I bid you farewell. We will be taking a well-deserved 14-day recess and will be back with our predictions for the FIRST PPV of Season #4, TNA’s Against All Odds 2012. As always, thank you for reading our predictions. Now go and enjoy the rest of your weekend!

Be sure to check out all the VIP material before the Royal Rumble. Also, for $4.99 a month you get so much for your money, including this weekend’s Pay-Per-View Post-Show hosted by Adam Martin, Hunter Golden, and Doug Lackey.

Thank you for reading and to those that do, participated in the column. We appreciate your feedback.

Once again, here is how you can join in on our predictions game. Please use these methods. If you post them under the “comments”, they will NOT be counted.